7 Best Restaurants in Villa Borghese, Piazza del Popolo, and Flaminio, Rome

The well-heeled, the business-minded, and those with refined palates frequent this outpost of tranquility. The owners hail from Le Marche, the region northeast of Rome that encompasses inland mountains and the Adriatic coastline, so dishes from their native region feature alongside seafood and meats ready to be grilled. There's also an excellent and well-priced wine list.

Though there's a full menu of pasta and fish or meat-based mains, those in the know head to this restaurant on Via Veneto specifically for the award-winning pizza. The decor is a bit over the top, and the prices are a little higher than at the average pizzeria, but it's a great option in this neighborhood. The Neapolitan-style pizzas come with a range of toppings, from standards like a margherita to creative pies like the Oro d'Ischia, which features two types of cheese, pollen, and fig jam from Ischia.

The location near Piazza del Popolo makes Brillo especially convenient for lunch or dinner after shopping in the Via del Corso area. The menu is quite extensive, with fried starters, burgers, salads, pastas, grilled meats, and pizzas. You can eat at the recently expanded dining room, outside on the patio, or downstairs in one of several rooms.

Esteemed director Federico Fellini, who lived around the corner on Via Margutta, used to come here all the time and even had an office in the back. His drawings and black-and-white stills from his films remain on display in the hallway that leads to the interior dining room, but the best place to sit for people-watching with a coffee, light lunch, or aperitivo is on the terrace out front. For a quicker—and cheaper—experience, order your coffee or sandwich and enjoy it standing at the bar like the locals do.

A cornerstone of the neighborhood, this wine shop opened in 1929 and is now run by the third generation of the Bulzoni family, who added tables and turned it into a restaurant. Stop by to taste excellent wines by the glass and you might be tempted to stay for the eggplant parmigiana or carbonara. 

The original location of Ercoli opened in Prati as a gourmet food store, and this newer location has a deli counter where you can buy cheeses, cold cuts, smoked salmon, caviar, and other delicacies. What this location has that the other two don't is a vermouth bar—and during aperitivo hour (6 pm until 8 pm), classic cocktails and select small plates are 50% off. There's also a full menu with pastas, salads, and mains. The third (and newest) location is in Trastevere.

Inside the Palazzo Ripetta hotel, this all-day dining destination has a warm ambience, with marble-topped tables; velvet sofas; and archival maps, prints, and photos decorating the walls. Executive chef Christian Spalvieri trained under Gordon Ramsay in London and brings technical precision and a bit of a French influence to an otherwise Italian menu.